Past the Halfway Mark..

Well it has been awhile since I last updated and I'm sorry for that. But we have been SUPER busy. Well I should have updated over the summer because I had PLENTY of downtime but the kids were in the pool almost daily and I hate being on the computer while they are swimming so I just didn't. Now for an update...

We are past the halfway mark of this deployment which means THIS DEPLOYMENT IS MORE THAN HALFWAY FINISHED!!!! Even though I still feel like we have forever and a day until he is home :( but its still nice knowing that we're so much closer than the day he left :) So here's what has happened since last time I updated..

Over the summer the kids and I headed to Texas. That was a LONG two months. YES we went home for the WHOLE summer. I have never been so bored in my life! I enjoyed seeing family and friends but it was hard because almost EVERY weekend we were driving somewhere to spend time with someone. My parents live in a tiny podunk town (its also where my husband and I grew up) and their is not much to do there so anytime we wanted to go and do something we had to make the 30-60 minute drive. But a lot of exciting things happened while we were home. My best friend got engaged(and she asked me to be in her wedding!!). My brother got engaged. I WENT BLONDE! We went to Florida for a family vacation and I got to see my amazing friend Kelly who I met while we were stationed at Bragg together. And I'm sure other exciting things happened but I seriously cannot even remember back that far.

Adam had some scary things happen during the summer. Well they were scary to me, I'm not sure how he felt about them. But I'm not going to go into detail about that.. Thankfully he is still safe and is just as ready to be back home as we are to have him back home. He picked up ping pong and started playing volleyball to keep him busy while he's not at the gym or doing school work. Which honestly I'm glad because he was watching WAY too many movies :). I kept thinking that has to be boring. Right? I mean you can only watch so many movies.. But I like knowing that they have some things for them to do during down time.

The kids and I got back to NY a few days before school started. The drive was LONG! But thankfully my mom drove it with me and then she stayed in NY for a few days because my brother was flying up to visit his fiancé and we spent a little bit of time with them before my mom flew back to Texas. The kids started school and life went back to normal.

Brett is now in 2nd grade and Brynna is in kindergarten. I have no idea what to do with myself now that my side kick is gone. Brynna and I use to do everything together and now she has left me for school and he friends. But they both really enjoy school. Brett also started soccer and Brynna started gymnastics. Next week they will also be starting piano. I had planned on getting a job but due to us going home for Thanksgiving and Christmas and then Adam getting home sometime the beginning of 2016 and THEN him wanting to go home a month after he gets back and THEN us going on our trip without the kids we decided it still would not be best if I got a job. So I got my business license and am doing photography. Photography is something I really love doing. I've done it for awhile for my friends and family and taken photos of my kiddos many times. Finally I just made the move and am now able to do it and get paid. I also signed up to volunteer some while the kids are at school and meet up with a few spouses during the week just to keep me busy. I try not to sit at home during the day because then it becomes extremely boring and I turn in to the lazy bum who doesn't want to get out of her pajamas.

Truthfully this deployment hasn't been all that bad. Yes their are bad days and my next blog post will probably discuss some of the bad days we have had, but I am extremely thankful for facebook video chat and calling, Skype, facetime, the internet, and just the fact that I am able to hear his voice or see his face almost every day. We miss him daily and life sucks without him home but I know it wont be much longer.

Today we made some goody bags with the FRG and it was nice being involved again. I missed helping out with the FRG, our last two FRG's I was very involved in but this base has been a LOT different for me. I don't know anyone that he works with, I haven't been too involved with the FRG, and I honestly don't even know where he works. I've been there a few times but if I needed to go pick him up tomorrow I'd need him to give me turn by turn directions lol. Funny thing is this base is the smallest base out of the 3 we've been to.

But that's it for now. I promise I will do another blog post soon. And it'll be a little more out of my comfort zone. But I'm blogging for 2 reasons, 1 is so later on I can look back and reread everything and 2 is because if someone is searching and finds my blog I want them to realize they are not alone and sometimes life isn't always perfect, BUT it has it's not so great days..

What some military spouses may not know..

My husband will tell you I am a researcher. I get as much info as I can about things because I refuse to get myself into a situation that I know nothing about. Some days it drives him absolutely crazy because even though I am ALWAYS right he hates to admit it. Facebook, google, and personal blogs are great ways to get REAL opinions and recommendations. You could learn a lot about the military life or certain installations just by using the internet. Here are the few things you may not know as a military spouse but might want to know :)

PCS/Moving- ANYTIME the military moves you(pcs) you are given DLA. I have read numerous times where people didn't know they received this money when they moved and found out too late so they lost out on the $2,000+. Click here and you can also see what else you receive whenever you move(this is only for a PCS not if you move from one house to another at or near the same base). If ya'll have an upcoming PCS try and go to the levy briefing to write down everything you need to remember. Yes the husbands go but it helps if you go too, that away you aren't clueless when it comes to the move and if he forgets something maybe it will be something you remembered :)

MyCAA- Very few people know about MyCAA and it pretty much turns in to wasted money if not used. MyCAA gives you $4000 to pay for almost any type of schooling. To some $4000 might not be a lot. And truthfully when it comes to school it really isn't. BUT that is $4000 you don't have to spend on school. The only down fall to MyCAA is you have to use it by a certain time. You have to be married to an active duty service member in pay grades E1-E5, O1-O2, or W1-W2. You can use that money to get a certificate in something or you can use the $4000 to help pay for a degree. It won't cover it in full but it will help. So don't let that money go to waste, USE IT! You also need know MyCAA does not cover books so if you take a class through your local junior college you will probably have to pay out of pocket for your books.

FASFA- A lot of military families who qualify for MyCAA also qualify for FASFA and you can use MyCAA and FASFA together. FASFA WILL PAY FOR YOUR BOOKS!

METLIFE- Tricare does not cover dental work. Tricare covers your health and vision but not dental. If you plan on seeing a dentist have your spouse or even yourself enroll you and your children(if you have them) into metlife to cover your dental. ALSO Tricare only covers the eye exam. It DOES NOT cover glasses, contacts, or the contact exam. You will have to pay that out of pocket.

WIC- In the beginning surviving off what little pay ya'll get is hard paying for all the bills, gas, and groceries. And then you are left eating bread and water the last few days before payday. WIC helps military families up until a certain rank. I'm not sure if military families without children qualify but it doesn't hurt to call your local wic office and ask.

Space-A & Patriot Express-  Not many people know about this. Space-A and Patriot Express can be pretty amazing. It is a way for military members and dependents to travel and pay very little for flights. It can be a bit difficult but to pay $4-$50 per person to fly is pretty cheap! For those of yall wanting to know more about space-a click here and it will take you to the FAQ page. I'm not too familiar with it so I don't want to give the wrong information to people, their are many requirements to travel space-a.

ICE- If you only remember one thing from this blog post PLEASE remember ICE! ICE is a GREAT tool for service members and dependents to use and it can be done anonymously if you'd like. Now don't abuse this tool. It is a website where DoD customers can rate their services provided. I will personally say I have used this a LOT in the past year. A LOT more than I wanted to. But every single time it was necessary. Don't file a complaint just because your husband was smoked for showing up 30 minutes late. Or because he is having to work late all week. Their is a time and place for an ICE complaint. You can't expect someone to fix something they know nothing about and that's where ICE comes in place. Not only can you make complaints on the ICE website but you can also provide positive feedback. My son was bit by a dog and the doctor we saw off post at the hospital also worked on post and followed up with us twice about the dog bite. He did great with my son so we provided positive feedback on ICE about him. It is a great tool for all to use.

CYS- Child and Youth Services is on every military installation where dependents are allowed. It is where you enroll your kids in sports, child care, and many other things. If your spouse is deploying CYS gives you a little more benefits. Here at Fort Drum we get:
- 16 hours free care per month/per child at Hourly Programming.
- $2.00 per hour after 16 hrs of free monthly hourly care
- Free Care for deployment briefings
- Free Care for FRG meetings            
(including one month prior and 3 months after  deployment)
- 20% fee discount for Full Day and Part Day care with a working spouse  
- $300 SKIES Credit (instructional) per Dep.  
- $100 CYSS Sports Credit per Dep.
But your child does have to be enrolled in CYS before you qualify for all this. And all you need is an updated physical, shot records, and certain records. You can call CYS to schedule an appointment and see what all you need to bring.

DISCOUNTS- here is a discount list. Those probably are not all of the discounts you and your spouse can receive with a military ID. Any time we make a big purchase or set up service with someone we make sure to ask about a military discount. We don't ask for it whenever we pay for dinner and if they give it we just add the discount they gave us on to our tip we give. But like we bought furniture a few months back and that was a BIG purchase but we got a small discount that makes it not SO BIG! haha. Our phone, tv, and internet service we have a discount. If you buy a car at the end ask if they do a military discount. Don't ask up front because they will probably act like they gave a military discount but jack up another fee to make it even out. During certain military holidays a lot of the stores near military bases will do sales and then if you show your military id you will get even more of a discount! Last year Kirklands had a HUGE sale. I think it was the weekend of veterans day and if you had your military id you got the extra 10% off. Well I had been eyeing this huge painting that I just loved but it was over $100 and I am cheap when it comes to buying décor.. That weekend I managed to get the painting for $30-$40!!

Military OneSourse- The military life does have it's difficulties. Your spouse could be suffering from PTSD and you may think you have no where to turn but Military OneSourse is confidential and offers a lot of help. You or your children could also be having problems coping with the recent deployment. Give Military OneSourse a call. Don't knock it until you've tried it. Maybe you are new to the military and are clueless when it comes to budgeting. Call Military OneSourse. Their is help out there and all you have to do is make the call.

The military does have a LOT more to offer military spouses these are just some of the things I have seen that most people don't know about.

(you can click on every bold blue word and it will take you to their website to get more information)

Since we've been gone..

We left Fort Bragg July 18th and headed to Texas. Adam got to be home for a few days in Texas and then it was time for him to head to Fort Sill, Oklahoma for him to go to AIT(a school for him to change his MOS, or job in the military). The kids and I are staying with family in Texas while Adam is in school in Oklahoma. Adam's school was supposed to be from July 25th to September 26th(or sometime right around there). Well he ended up failing out of the class. Adam failing out of his class somewhat complicated things. Originally Adam was reclassing(changing his job) to 29E and then we'd go live in Fairbanks, Alaska(Fort Wainwright). Since he failed his class he wouldn't be a 29E he would continue being a 13D what his original MOS(job) was. Since he was a 13D still they didn't need him at Fort Wainwright so they asked him if he'd go to airborne school and they'd send him to Anchorage, Alaska(Fort Richardson AKA JBER). The thing is our HHG(all our furniture, decor, clothes, EVERYTHING) was currently in Alaska. We were already approved to go to Alaska. Everything was taken care of except our plane tickets and shipping the car. Well 2 weeks later Adam calls them about his airborne paperwork he submitted and they end up telling him they don't have any slots available for him to go to airborne school right now and that he is going to Fort Drum, New York. Fort Drum wasn't even an option in the beginning. It wasn't even on the radar haha.. That just goes to show exactly how fast things can change in the military. In less than a month things changed 3-4 different times. It has been a huge nightmare. We are currently STILL waiting for paper orders. We can't apply for housing, we can't call transportation to have our HHG brought back to the east coast(they are currently sitting in a storage in Fairbanks, Alaska), we can't plan our move. NOTHING! We are still just waiting. Which has been the trend this whole pcs.. Adam also got an email TODAY. He has a levy briefing next week to prepare him for the pcs... No big deal right? WRONG. Its in Fort Bragg, NC and he is at Fort Sill, OK.... I swear these people have made this pcs one laughing matter after another. I can't even get mad anymore. I just wait for the next thing to screw up. So as of now we are going to Fort Drum, New York and we are supposed to be there by October 20th.. Who knows if it'll change AGAIN for the hundredth time but maybe the 3rd times a charm haha.

New York... How do I feel about living in New York. I have mixed feelings. The main reason I am not happy about living in New York is because it is NOT Alaska. Those of yall who have heard me talk about my dream duty station already know this but my dream place to live while Adam is in the military is Alaska. I didn't care if it was Fairbanks or Anchorage I just wanted to live in Alaska. Yes I know its freezing there, yes I know it snows ALL THE TIME. Yes I know during the summer it is pretty much sunny all day and during the winter its pretty much dark all day. I know its probably crazy to WANT to live in Alaska BUT just like Korea its a once in a life time opportunity. People tell me all the time why don't you use vacation there. I dont want to travel to Alaska and visit for a week I want to LIVE THERE for a few years and travel over time. Who knows maybe in a few years we will get the chance again. But if not I can say I ALMOST lived in Alaska haha.. It was so close I could almost touch it but then the army took it back. haha. With that being said, I am not mad that we will be living in New York. I am excited to get to experience the life of a Yankee(wont be a NY Yankees fan though, I will always be a Ranger fan). I'm excited to give New York a little southern hospitality. I'm excited to be a few hours away from NYC, Niagara Falls, Canada, and so much more. They still have skiing near by which is what I REALLY wanted to do. I already have a pinterest board for things we WILL be doing while living in New York. And the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is one of them :) not sure if we will be going this year or next year BUT we are going. We will have to be in New York for 2 years and then who knows. My biggest thing with living in New York is this Texas girl NEEDS AC and apparently not all the housing there has gotten with the program and they dont have AC. I'm not too excited about that. I'm sorry but if it gets over 80 degrees EVER then you NEED AC. It's a NEED not a want. So I may end up in the hospital with a heat stroke the first day of summer in NY.

Adam and I with Brett and Brynna
before their first day of school

The kids are currently in school here in Texas. Brett is in 1st grade and Brynna is in Pre-K. They both like school but Brett doesn't like that 1st grade doesn't have all the fun play time like pre-k and kindergarten did. Brett is having issues staying focused and not talking so much. He hardly ever got into trouble at school in pre-k and kindergarten but when he did it was with staying focused and talking. So we are having to work with that. Brynna LOVES her teacher and loves school. She didn't want to leave whenever we went for meet the teacher and on the weekends she is always asking to go to school. It has been great being home visiting family while Adam is doing his schooling. Had I known things would have worked out the way they did the kids and I would have tried to stay in North Carolina while he did his schooling. But you live and you learn.. Brett is starting to lose his first tooth. Brynna is a swimmer now and can swim along with her big brother. A week before school started Brynna learned how to spell and write her name all by herself. They are both growing up and changing so much!

Time For A New Blog

I thought about continuing my original blog (My Journey For Their Miracle) but I decided to keep that blog just about surrogacy and this blog will be about our everyday crazy life. You will probably enjoy it just as much as you enjoyed my surrogacy blog.

Within 3 years Adam, the kids, and I have moved to another country, and back, to another state, and back, and now we are about to be on our way to New York. We were SUPPOSED to be moving to Alaska but things changed and now we will be moving back to the east coast. NEW YORK HERE WE COME! Adam has now agreed to 5 more years in the military and who knows how many times we'll move within the next 5 years and how many different places we will see along the way. So I PLAN to blog about our experiences along the way. But I am a mom to 2 school aged kiddos, a military wife, I am planning on starting back school within the next 6 months and hopefully finding a job soon once we get there. So I will probably get busy and forget to update haha. So just bare with me :)